Friday, July 20, 2012

Did Someone Say Treehouse?.....

And, if I didn't have enough irons in the fire.....I get this crazy notion that I want my very own tree house.  At 50....you want a what?....yes sir I do!  And I do!  And now that the three amigos are listed here on my blog, I really do have many irons in the fire.  Gail, get blogging!  Until then though, here's a picture of the tree house....

Oh, and I will return with so much more to tell you!  Until then.....

July 23rd, 2012

Not much done on the tree house this weekend.....we worked all of it on the portable sawmill processing everything we had cut and not finished trimming.  I did manage to sneak up there and fit one of the windows, and it looks so cute!  I will post a picture tonight.  I need to trim a bit of the window in order for it to close and latch into the frame properly.  That is on my "honey-do" list for next trip up.  Until then...

July 24th, 2012

I didn't get to post the window pictures last night....a bit too tired to blog.  And, with all this humidity, all I wanted to do was sit in front of the a/c.  So.....hopefully tonight I can do like I promised and post the picture.



Slowly but surely, it is coming together!  I love it.

August 6th, 2012

Well, work we did.....but on the tree house, no.  :(  As sad as this made me, I was still happy to be in our wooded paradise.  We did manage to hike up with a lantern and hang out in there for a while.  The pictures don't really do it justice, but I will post them anyway.

It was just about dusk so the lantern was a must.  It has citronella oil in it which kept the mosquitoes away.
In contrast, here's the same shot with a flash.

Bragging rights here.....there was much rain recently, and even though the windows and doors are not installed yet, our job on the tin roof is quite waterproof!

Until next time.....

September 2nd, 2012

Tree house work was second on the list this weekend!!!  My mom and sister visiting on Sunday for lunch took first place!  I made home made corn chowder and fried hotdogs (one of moms favs).  With bellies full and hugs and kisses to hold me over until our next visit, we were ready to get to work.  Windows were placed and will be hinged, latched and fitted next time.  With the upcoming weather due to the remnants of Hurricane Isaac, we wanted desperately to get it somewhat weather proofed.  Which we did....




It was a time consuming project to say the least.  On top of fitting the windows, trimming the windows and re-fitting them...the hike up and down the mountain carrying them was exhausting!  But, I am not complaining.....really!  It is good hard work with great rewards.


We even managed to get the north wall soffit finished.  The ladders are so long and heavy and tough to move, we decided to do all we could 'one side at a time' and only move them once.  Good idea.  The deck "door" is actually an antique storm door insert a friend gave me a long time ago.  I love that it has been re-purposed as a door itself.  We plan to build the back door out of cedar we have on hand.  It will resemble a barn style door.

Until next time...


September 17, 2012

We worked on the south side yesterday and although it doesn't look like much...trust me, it was much!  We took the windows back out to work both from within the tree house and on the ladders to start with the batting boards.  We also finished up the end trim on the roof soffit and fascia.   I think once finished it will look beautiful!  Check it out...



I'm not sure how much we will get done before snow falls, let's just hope the doors and windows are secured and trimmed out.  
Until next time....☼

October 2, 2012

The two south windows got hinged and hung, but they need tweaking.  I have to chisel out where the hinges attach on the outside in order for them to close properly.  If all goes well with those two, I will move on to the north wall windows after that.  We got all the tall bats nailed up.  Now we just need to cut the smaller ones above and below the windows and the south side will be completed.  Yay!!

 





Until next time...



October 10th, 2012

The project of the day was the entrance door to the tree house.  With the rough cut lumber we had left over, we built a beautiful barn style door.  You know the old saying; "measure twice, cut once"? well...I don't think that applied here.  You see, the door was built square, but the door opening was not quite square.  I remember saying, "let's make sure this is correct so we won't have to heft this heavy door up and down the mountain".  Four trips up and down and four fittings later.....door is in!  I will post pictures as soon as my server will allow me to.


Now that it's in and I am looking at this picture, I'm really thinking it does need a window in the door.  
(I wonder how that's going to fly...)
On to other projects...
While I was fitting the south wall windows, Jerry was continuing on with the board and bat project on the cabin.  I will add photos on that post.  Here's the tree house windows I finished...


 This old window needed a bit of reinforcing....so with my trusty hand drill, I drilled pilot holes for the screws.  The braces aren't that nice to look at, but I will touch them up with some paint to camouflage them later on.
I even put the 1" trim boards up along with small brass hooks to hold the windows shut.  Yes, I am patting myself on the back here.
One last thing we did on the south exterior wall was finish up the batting above and below the windows.
Until next time...

October 21st, 2012

Progress is being made on the completion of the exterior on the tree house.  We finished up the batting on the back side and have moved onto the north side.  I mentioned wanting to put a window in the door, and it seems that should have been planned at the design stage. The wheels are spinning on ideas though.  If you have any that you'd like to tell me about, please comment!



I started a stone stairway towards the tree house.  It needs a bit more work, but take a look...


The bank here gets a bit slick, and with the stepping stones it will be a safer climb  to the top.
Until next time...

January 24th, 2013

Well, the autumn leaves fell and the winter snows have started falling.   The tree house sits in waiting for work to resume in the springtime.  For now though, we visit on occasion to make sure her windows are still attached and the roof is not peeling off from Mother Nature's wrath.  I marvel at the progress of my little oasis in the pines.  As I look things over, I envision all my plans in motion once the weather breaks.  The stairs leading up to the tiny landing at the door.  The deck all decked out in pine and railings.  The interior and all the design ideas rolling around in my head.  Not to wish time away, I wait patiently for spring to break out my tool belt and scratch pad.


My attempt at a puzzle panoramic for you! :)
 Until next time... 










Cabin In The Woods...

Even though my first love was the Atco trailer, which I still am planning on giving a name (I already have one in mind for the new decor to follow), next on the love list is the cabin in the woods.  It is in Grafton VT, our heaven on earth.  As we built the cabin, we stayed in the trailer.  I was torn when it came time to "move out" of the trailer and into the cabin.  Now that that has happened, I've never looked back except to want to pretty the trailer up.  Before I go into my story of the cabin however, I will leave you with a current photo of it...

And by current, I mean within the last few years and seasons.  This photo delights me because it looks like a miniature model.  It must have been the way I angled the camera....but I do love it!  Yeah, we get major snow up there.

Until next post.....
July 23rd, 2012

After a weekend at camp, and much work outside, it was time for the usual clean up, do dishes, put things back where they belong and head back down the hill.  While I was sweeping the unfinished wooden floor, I discovered tiny little pin holes and little piles of sawdust in a few of the boards.  Oh NO!!!  Wood beatles??  How can that be?  In doing online research this morning, I've found out it can very well be.  Even with the cold of the winters up there.  So, next trip up, on the top of my "honey-do" list will be exterminating the wood boring beatles.  I am going to try a simple mixture of water and Borax for my first attempt.  If I am successful, I will be putting a sealer on the bare wood for sure!  As much as I love the smell of the wood when we first walk in, I would rather preserve it from pests.  I will let you know how I make out on my next post.  Wish me luck!

August 6th, 2012

Here's a before shot of the floor and its recently discovered occupants "handy work".....

That tiny pinhole in the center of the photo.....is a bore hole from those pesky beetles that I must evict!

First thing to do........inspect floor!  No activity....nice.  Now, I know that doesn't mean they've packed up and moved out.  I did show up well equipped with Borax, bucket and paint brush.  Unfortunately, I was unable to direct my attention to the floor project.  My "honey-do" list was trumped by my honey's do list.  So....here's a couple of photos to show you what we did with (my) time...

 

It probably doesn't look like a whole lot of work, but believe me....just the two of us, in 90 degrees with about 85% humidity....it is!  Thank God for the outdoor shower!!  Once the boards are up, the next step will be putting the batting up to hide the seams.  This will add extra insulating properties as well as match the shed.


And, I think I may want the camp to age naturally like this.  I think....
Until next time.....

August 14th, 2012

Sometimes when you have a list of "things to do", you don't always finish the tasks in the order that they are in.  My perfect example was this past weekend at the cabin.  My planned eviction of the boring beetles was postponed due to a water sample that had to be taken from the well, mailed and reach the lab within a 30 hour window.  Since the flood, many Vermonters have had to have their water tested.  It's quite common and the people who work in the post offices are very familiar with the cardboard mailer and its urgency to reach its destination.  I was very pleased when checking my delivery confirmation online to discover the cardboard vehicle reached its proper destination in 23 hours!  More impressive was the fact that it arrived in Burlington at 7:06am and was at the lab at 7:08am.  Way to go USPS!! 

Then there was my "honeys do" list.....  Don't get me wrong, I know it's a joint venture.  But by bumping up his list, it is causing my list to grow even longer.  I will work around it, and I do.  As a warning to the tenants in my wood floor, I did manage to sprinkle a bit of dry Borax into their "port holes" and broom it in good.  This will keep them out of my mind until the next time up.  I hope.

All my gripes aside, we did progress well on the board and bat project.  Here are a few pictures for  you...


I can already envision window boxes filled with bright red mums!  The windows will have cedar trim.
Thank you to my sister for coming up with us to help.  We worked hard, but we had fun too.





Until next time...

September 2, 2012

We finished up the boards on the back side of the cabin....
Not the best pic with the phone box, but that's the back side of the cabin ready and waiting for Thompsons Watersealer and the bat boards to complete the look.  We still need to do the cabin soffits as you can see.

Until next time...

October 2, 2012

I worked on my solar lamp post project this week.  I just love it!!  Check it out...
The Beech tree came from RI.  It had a bittersweet root growing around it for years and was finally cut down.  Thanks to the bittersweet, it created a wonderful cork screw effect.





I chiseled all the bark off first, then cut the base square and the top angled.  I drilled a hole in the top to hold the shepherd's hook and finally coated it with oil to bring out the luster of the wood as well as preserve it.  I think it is a lovely addition to the area. 

Until next time...

October 10th 2012

While I worked up in the tree house, Jerry finished what he could on the cabins porch side with boarding.  He did a really nice job without me. :)
I like how it has changed the entire look and feel of the outside.  Not that I didn't like the russet color of the T-111, I do prefer the natural look a bit more.  I just realized I have to put up the storm door plexiglass  windows.  We did have to light the wood stove this week.  It was a chilly 40 something in there...brrr!  But, it didn't take long for it to heat up to a balmy 70 degrees.

All the leaves are changing and falling.  It really is a beautiful time of year in VT.  And, I love it.
Until next time...

January 24th, 2013

I know it's been a while since I posted about the cabin.  Holidays and such things in life seem to take over the computer comfort zone....which is sometimes a good thing!  But, here are a couple winter pics to hold you over until I get blogging again...


Until then...